"Artificial intelligence is an interesting and somewhat odd topic in the sense that, on the one hand, it is currently receiving quite a lot of attention in the media and in public discourse; on the other hand, for people in general — at least for now — it is not a particularly pressing issue compared with, say, security, making ends meet or taxes," Tarmo Jüristo told ERR.

"At the same time, as a manifesto topic it is not a bad idea to flag it: it points to a vision, is connected to the economy and the future and is likely intended to reinforce the Reform Party's image as a forward-looking party with a sense of where and how the next generation of economic growth and jobs might come from," he added.

"Overall, I am rather doubtful at this point whether this would mobilize many voters. It seems more like a line cast toward the media and more influential opinion leaders in the hope that they pick it up and start actively discussing these issues instead of topics that Isamaa and the Center Party would prefer to discuss in connection with the Reform Party," Jüristo said.

Political scientist Martin Mölder likewise believes that the topic of artificial intelligence does not resonate strongly with voters.

"Artificial intelligence and its impact on the economy or our daily lives is an unpredictable field. At present, no one can really say exactly what will happen or change in the next five or ten years in this regard," he said.

"I think emphasizing artificial intelligence has more of a symbolic meaning. It is an attempt to communicate that the party is progressive and forward-looking. But I do not believe this message resonates strongly with voters. It is certainly not a decisive factor in bringing voters to the polls or shaping their voting decisions," Mölder commented.

Reform: AI will make Estonia bigger

The Reform Party on March 7 unveiled a vision for Estonia's future for public discussion and idea-gathering, titled the "blue-black-white vision."

The seven-page document is divided into three sections, each characterized by one color of the national flag. Blue represents individual freedom and dignity, black stands for security and defense and white focuses on the economy.

Artificial intelligence plays a central role in the vision, running through all three sections. "We may be 1.3 million people in Estonia, but with the help of artificial intelligence, our contribution can be millions times greater," the document states.

Henri Arras, who contributed to drafting the vision document, told ERR on Wednesday that the emphasis on artificial intelligence stems from the fact that it represents the biggest change set to significantly affect every aspect of life.

"We should not underestimate forward-thinking people, entrepreneurs and philosophers who say that this change is on the same level as electrification or the adoption of the internet. It will have very wide-ranging impacts. The question now is how Estonia relates to this — whether we simply say these things will happen and artificial intelligence will come from somewhere and it is not our role to make sense of it. Or, on the contrary, we ensure that artificial intelligence does not infringe on individuals' rights in problematic ways, while also addressing people's real anxiety about whether it will take their jobs. At the same time, artificial intelligence could in fact be the creator of those jobs," Arras said.

At the same time, Arras stressed that artificial intelligence is certainly not the sole core of the vision.

"Artificial intelligence stands out in that, for some reason, it has not really been addressed in Estonian politics so far, as it is such a new and, for politicians, likely still unfamiliar field. It has not been discussed in a way that examines where we are heading with artificial intelligence. The blue-black-white vision is probably the first attempt in Estonian politics to map out a direction that highlights the potential of artificial intelligence to increase Estonia's prosperity and strengthen security," Arras added.

Artificial intelligence was also mentioned this week as a possible election issue by Kristina Kallas, leader of Estonia 200.

--

Follow ERR News on Facebook and X and never miss an update!